A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to repeal personal education plans and MODIFY transition plans.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115C‑105.41 reads as rewritten:
"§ 115C‑105.41.  Students who have been placed at risk of academic failure and transition plans.
(a)	In order to implement Part 1A of Article 8 of this Chapter, local school administrative units shall identify students who are at risk for academic failure and who are not successfully progressing toward grade promotion and graduation, beginning in kindergarten. Identification shall occur as early as can reasonably be done and can be based on grades, observations, diagnostic and formative assessments, State assessments, and other factors, including reading on grade level, that impact student performance that teachers and administrators consider appropriate, without having to await the results of end‑of‑grade or end‑of‑course tests.

(b)	Local boards of education shall adopt and implement rules that direct school improvement teams to consider transition plans for students at risk, as defined by the State Board of Education. These transition plans are to assist at risk students in making a successful transition between the elementary and middle school years and between the middle and high school years.
SECTION 2.  G.S. 115C‑83.7(c) reads as rewritten:
"(c)	The superintendent shall determine whether a student may be exempt from mandatory retention on the basis of a good cause exemption. The following steps shall be taken in making the determination:
(1)	The teacher of a student eligible for a good cause exemption shall submit documentation of the relevant exemption and evidence that promotion of the student is appropriate based on the student's academic record to the principal. Such evidence shall be limited to the student's individual education program, if applicable, alternative assessment, or student reading portfolio.
(2)	The principal shall review the documentation and make an initial determination whether the student should be promoted. If the principal determines the student should be promoted, the principal shall make a written recommendation of promotion to the superintendent for final determination. The superintendent's acceptance or rejection of the recommendation shall be in writing."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 115C‑83.9(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Parents or guardians shall be notified in writing, and in a timely manner, that the student shall be retained, unless he or she is exempt from mandatory retention for good cause, if the student is not demonstrating reading proficiency by the end of third grade. Parents or guardians shall receive this notice when a kindergarten, first, second, or third grade student (i) is demonstrating difficulty with reading development; or (ii) is not reading at grade level."
SECTION 4.  This act is effective when it becomes law and applies beginning with the 2015‑2016 school year.